Tamil Nadu rain intensified across the western and southern districts on Friday, improving reservoir inflows but triggering waterlogging, traffic disruption and flood warnings, while parts of the Cauvery delta continued to receive too little rainfall for samba paddy farmers.
The India Meteorological Department warned of heavy rain in districts including Theni, Tenkasi and Tirunelveli over the coming days. An orange alert was issued for Coimbatore and the Nilgiris as the northeast monsoon strengthened across the state.
In Theni, Periyakulam recorded 147mm of rain in the 24 hours ending Friday morning. Vaigai dam received 124mm and Andipatti recorded 102mm. Residents were advised not to bathe in the Vaigai river or approach its banks because of the possibility of sudden flooding. Waterfalls in the region were closed to tourists, while authorities asked residents to move livestock to safer locations.
Teams were deployed to monitor 43 flood-vulnerable locations in Madurai. Government officials said inflow into the Vaigai reservoir had reached 400 cusecs, raising its water level to 43.24 feet against its full level of 71 feet. The IMD forecast isolated heavy rain in Theni and Madurai on Friday and Saturday.
Coimbatore experienced widespread rain from Thursday evening, with showers continuing on Friday. Pollachi recorded 153mm, the highest rainfall in the district, while Podanur received 90.6mm. Strong winds and prolonged rain caused waterlogging on major roads and traffic congestion across several stretches of the city.
Weather observer Santhosh Krishnan said the entire Kongu belt, including Coimbatore city, had received very heavy rain after nearly one and a half years. Rainfall across parts of the Western Ghats also improved water levels in the Parambikulam, Aliyar, Thirumoorthy and Amaravathi dams.
The rainfall pattern remained uneven across the Cauvery delta. Thanjavur district was largely dry apart from light showers in Pattukottai, Budalur and Thiruvidaimaruthur. Tiruvarur, Nagapattinam and Mayiladuthurai recorded modest rainfall. Farmers in the delta said they were hoping for a stronger spell in the coming days, as the existing showers were inadequate to sustain samba paddy crops.
The contrast between intense rainfall in western and southern districts and weaker showers in the delta has created different administrative pressures at the same time. Authorities are managing rising reservoir inflows and local flood risks in some areas while farmers elsewhere remain dependent on further rain for crop survival.
In Tiruchirappalli, rain on Thursday night flooded major roads and low-lying areas. Water had receded by Friday morning, but waterlogged bus routes and power cuts disrupted commuters. The disruption exposed vulnerabilities in civic drainage and road infrastructure at the beginning of the monsoon.
The IMD warnings and district-level monitoring operations remain in force as isolated heavy rain is expected in parts of western and southern Tamil Nadu over the next two days.
